Actors
by WhiteLadyDragon
Summary: Who would guess that Mogi would take Method acting lessons, from a conman, no less? "They say that an actor is the only honest hypocrite."


_**Disclaimer! **_**All fictional entities featured/ mentioned in this segment belong to Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata. The Stanislavski system is a method of acting developed by Russian actor and theater director Constantin Stanislavski, and Method acting is derived from the Stanislavski system, advocated by American actor and director Lee Strasberg. **

**An experimental fanfic on just writing Mogi and Aiber together, two characters I haven't delved very extensively into. Or anyone on here, really. Enjoy! **

_**ACTORS**_

What is Ryuzaki thinking, assigning him to this task? It's not so much the fact that Mogi is taking Matsuda's place as Misa's "manager" that bothers him, as it is everything that it entails. Including how he's supposed to act in public.

Peppy? Hyper-energetic? Talkative? He realizes that Matsuda is supposed to be "dead," and he is the only available team member suitable for the job, but peppy, hyper, and talkative are all everything Matsu is, and what he…isn't. He doesn't even like speaking other than when he is spoken to, and even then, he doesn't like to say more than is necessary. Not that he isn't a happy person; he is. But he isn't _that _happy. And as far as he's concerned, he can't force himself to be.

Not unless Aiber has something to say about it.

Mogi is somewhat surprised to find the conman knocking at his door when he answers it. "Aiber?"

"The one and only," he answers with a roguish smile. "May I come in?"

Mogi hesitates for a moment. Not that the other man has done him any personal wrong, but given his occupation, and Aiber's, he can't help but be a bit wary around him. He's a criminal that he's being forced to work with, a shameless one from what he's seen, at that.

Ultimately, when he can't think of a legitimate reason not to let him in, he steps aside to grant him access to his room. A wordless "sure." As he shuts the door behind him, he asks, "So…what do you need?"

"Oh, nothing I need. This is more about what _you _need," says Aiber, casually glancing about the room as he strolls through it, makes himself as comfortable as he can get.

Mogi, the master thrift with words, does not ask him to specify. He doesn't need to. Aiber picks up on his curiosity right away, and responds promptly: "When I heard Ryuzaki assigning you as Miss Amane's manager, I knew you'd need help getting into character for that interview."

Mogi notices how he's said "knew," rather than "guessed" or "figured." Aiber must be that confident in his abilities to read people.

He is. "When you've been conning for as long as I have, you get pretty good at people-reading. I can't say I don't sympathize with you, Kanzo." He tries to make things more personal between them, break the ice, so to speak, as he rests a hand on his shoulder, something that Mogi isn't sure what to make of. He's not attacking him, so he lets him keep his hand there. He's actually more surprised about his addressing him by his first name.

Aiber shakes his head. "Ryuzaki must be cruel to be making you do this, go against your very nature. Kanzo Mogi: the rock of the task force, the strong, silent type, the wallflower despite once being the star player of the football team…"

Okay, that's enough. "If it's part of my job, I think I can suck it up," he mumbles, cutting Aiber off before he can rehash any more memories of his foolhardy adolescent years.

Aiber chuckles back at him, "All right, no need to get defensive. You may not believe it from looking at me, but I was a wallflower too, once. I know how you feel, and that's why I'm here. Anyway, I have faith in your tenacity. But since this is my mission, too, I wouldn't want any of our covers blown just because you didn't smile enough or weren't in-your-face enough. I already know my character, John Wallace, or Eraldo Coil, whatever you like, inside and out, so I'm good. Since I'm here, we should help you get into Kenichi Moji's skin, while there's still time to rehearse."

Mogi isn't too enthusiastic about acting or drama, or any of those false or flashy things; he hasn't been for the longest time. On the other hand, he doesn't suppose he could pull this off without having undergone some practice beforehand, and who better to coach him than a man who makes a living out of it? When it boils down to it, there isn't anyone.

So he agrees, and before long, the two are in front of the window, facing one another. "Tell me, Kanzo, have you ever heard of Method acting?"

"No." He hasn't had the time or interest to keep track of acting methods.

"I figured as such. They say that an actor is the only honest hypocrite, and I think this method will work for you. It's derived from Stanislavski's system; practitioners attempt to get inside the character they're portraying and _become _them—feel everything they feel, live every experience they do. To do that, actors tap into their own relevant memories and inner feelings. You can take years studying the Method, but since the interview is in three days, we'll have to cram."

Mogi vaguely wishes he wouldn't use that word, "hypocrite." It only makes him all the more reluctant to do this, and he grunts to himself.

Aiber folds his arms and says a bit sternly for him, "Kanzo, this isn't going to work unless you're willing to let it work."

Mogi chooses duty over personal opinion. "Right. Sorry. I'll give it my best shot. Where do I start?"

"Exactly where I said: tap into your emotional memory, and use it to become Kenichi Moji. Kenichi Moji is a loud, energetic manager, full of pep and determination to promote Misa-Misa. He won't take no for an answer. You are introducing Misa to the Yotsuba Group…"

It doesn't take Aiber long to resume the posture of the target…scratch that, client: a stoic businessman from the Yotsuba Group. He makes it look as easy as slipping on a bathrobe. Meanwhile, Mogi is getting knee-deep as he digs into his memory for something that will bring out the loud peppiness that he doesn't actually have.

Aiber quickly breaks out of his own character to add, "Don't hold anything back. Embrace your character. Whatever you find, embrace it and don't let it go."

…

Well, there have been people in his life who are similar to Kenichi. Matsuda, for starters. But it goes back a little further than that. His coach from his old football team, he was larger than life. He can hear his encouraging whoops and hollers roaring in his ears, almost as thunderous as his pulse and the pain and the cleats trampling the earth below him as he shuffles the ball between them, torpedoing towards the net that will win them the championship—

The excitement that strikes him when he sees that ball almost rip a hole in the net, left unexpressed only by exhaustion and dehydration and pain, spills out before Mogi is fully aware of it: "I'm Misa-Misa's manager, Kenichi Moji! You can call me Mochi! Pleased to meet you!"

Good gracious, did _he _just say that?

Aiber bows in reply, tweaking his voice to sound like a stuffy businessman's to say, "Good-morning. Our apologies for making you wait." He then breaks out into a grin. "Wow, Kanzo! For someone with no training, that was actually fairly decent. But you could use more passion. We should get Misa up here, make this scene more authentic…"

…

_I'm not cut out for this. I'm not cut out for this. _

Three days' worth of strenuous training later, he's driving Misa, their third actor, to Yotsuba's head office, the stage for their performance (and the place where Matsuda had tried so foolishly to infiltrate on his own, not so long ago). And all he can think as his grip on the steering wheel tightens is, _I'm not cut out for this. _

"Uh…Misa-Misa—"

"You're not smiling enough, Mochi," chides the idol from the back seat. "And you can just call me Misa, you know."

_I'm not cut out for this…but, it's part of my job, so…_

He takes a deep breath to sweep away his doubts and concentrate on his motivation. His job, Matsuda, football, and the sweet cascade of sports drinks over his head in commemoration of his victory, endorphins masking the agony in his ankle before he collapses on the field…

"_Misa-Misa!" _

Even Misa can't help but recoil at this sudden outburst. In hindsight, he doesn't blame her. "_Ah! _What is it, Mochi?"

"Today you have an interview with the Yotsuba Group to see if they'll use ya in their new ad campaign! But remember: this is also an infiltration mission, so stay sharp!" His face hurts from smiling so much. Is this even him talking? Or someone else?

"Don't you worry; I already know about that," Misa declares, well-conditioned from practice. Then, as though to remind him to remember his motivation, she says, "And of course, that means you can't let your cover fall, either. You're gonna play the character of the hyper-energetic manager, okay?"

"_Riiiight! Bring it on! HWOAH!" _

He almost snaps himself in two as he bows to two of the Yotsuba Group members meeting them in the lobby like a drinking bird, bellowing out greetings above Misa's.

He's so glad he can't see himself when he stands with his arms flung in the air, crying, "Good-luck, Misa-Misa! I'll be right here, ready to celebrate when they decide to hire you!" Only when he is sure that they're gone, does he sit down and resume his mantra. _I'm not cut out for this. _

No matter how good he's getting at it, he can't see himself doing this, all the time. He doesn't enjoy it, not like Aiber and Misa. They are good memories, but good memories shouldn't be used to lie about someone you're not. Someone you're not, anymore, at least.

He can't pity himself long, though. They'll return soon enough, as according to plan, and he still has a job to do.

…

The two men meet up again that night after they return to headquarters. Aiber offers a congratulatory handshake for Mogi's four-star performance. "I could hear you from the other side of the door," he jokes.

"Thanks. You said that an actor was the only honest hypocrite."

He's still not the acting type.

"Going back to what I said about being good at reading people, you love your job, Kanzo. Maybe a little too much. We've got more in common than at first glance."

Yes. Maybe they do, if for different reasons. Mogi for duty, Aiber for the thrill of it.

As Mogi would find out later, another area of common interest between them is food and drink.

"I can also tell that you need to unwind. I got just the thing: let's get a drink. On me."

"All right. Nothing too fancy for me, thanks."

And the rest is history.

_**END**_


End file.
